Gomez categorises the social work training programme into three Stages;
2000-2003, investigating and relaying information to the state about socioeconomic problems detected; 2004~2008, carrying out tasks designed by the programme; and 2008-2011, developing a professional practice. The social workers began by visiting over 6,500 ‘disconnected’ under-21-year-olds in Havana to enquire about their situations, with the ultimate aim of keeping them out of prison. Mirroring the young prisoners studied before, many of these youths had left education during or on completing secondary school, Only 2.5 per cent had professional parents, 69 per cent had families in ‘unfavourablesocial situations’, 37.8 per centlived in ‘marginal’ neighbourhoods, 263 had already been to prison and 165 were prisoners.“ Given the deterioration in the value of Cuban salaries during the Special Period, instead of registering in Cuba’s employment offices they had sought incomes through the informal sector or illegal activities. Importantly, however, 80 per cent of them said they would like to return to study, or enter employment.
Armed with this information, the revolutionary leadership sought to tackle the problem. Again harking back to the 1960s, study was offered as an employment option for disconnected youth.” A new Comprehensive Improvement Course was established nationwide from 1 October 2001, with students paid to study computer science, English, geography, history, and math in 3 hour classes 4 times a week. "the goal is for these young people to acquire knowledge and culture explain the information leaflet to have the opportunity for upgrading studying social integration and participation in the production or the provision of services in the first Academic Year almost 74,500 young people aged between 17 and 19 were enrolled in 333 schools with 4,812 instructors about 15 students per teacher almost 2/3 of the students were young women and one quarter had children from March 2001 the first group of Social Work graduates continued the investigation started by b u t s visiting 197,282 under 15 year olds in Havana material conditions were found to be critical in 898 homes with 1,520 children the social workers and universities students return to those homes with financial and material Aid delivered by the state this demonstrated to ordinary humans the state's political will to address the problems of the most vulnerable families on a Case by case basis institutions were mobilized to tackle the causes of these households deprivation by finding employment for parents meeting educational needs and granting social assistance pensions and other health between March and December 2001 the social workers assumed a huge project to measure in way every Cuban child up to 15 years old the point Gomez said was to go beyond the numbers to alleviate the causes he recalled Fidel Castro insisting quote I don't need the statistics I need the name and surname and the reason the child is underweight who knows this who is looking after the child I cannot sleep peacefully and you tell me that it is 3%, that is 1%, that is low in this country that we have improved no no who is that child what are the causes and what should be done and quote the social workers were insisted by members of the Cuban Communist Party the Cuban women's Federation and the Committees for the defense of the revolution and government officials and accompanied by nurses and technicians to recalibrate the weighing equipment everyone participated said Gomez who was by then leading the social worker plan nationally the country mobilized across the island over 2.2 million children were weighed and measured children found to be below average scores were visited at home and their family situation was evaluated to determine possible causes subsequently a program of food assistance was rolled out to 97,733 children with regular checkups organized the situation of 28,517 minors was described as critical catalyzing coordinated action from the institutions caring for them
Fidel insisting " I don't need statistics I need the name and surname and the reason the child is underweight who knows this? who is looking after the child? I cannot sleep peacefully and you tell me that it is 3%, that is 1%, that is low in this country that we have improved. No! No! who is that child and what are the causes and what should be done?" is going to stick with me forever
When Cuba closed part of its sugar industry in 2003, in response to sugar prices globally bottoming out, they sent the workers for higher education they missed out on earlier in their lives instead of leaving them to languish. Imagine a world where that practice was normal everywhere
"Fidel spoke with the most authoritative voice" hell yeah,that's how you get every single child in a country of millions, who's under 15 and underweight accounted for and on nutrition or other care programs
"As we sip tea made from Bérriz's moringa tree, he shows me potato chips and spices dried with the solar equipment on the roof. " we are trying to teach people not to keep speaking about electricity as the universal carrier of energy" he says. He is is beaming about the potential for renewable energies and believes the effects of climate change can be halted. "Trump is a stupid man" proclaims Bérriz, referring to the us president's announcement just 5 weeks earlier that he would withdraw the united states from the Paris climate agreement and renegotiate a deal 'that's fair' for us interests. Motivated by greed Trump's agenda is to enrich the powerful counters Bérriz. "but this is my world as well, and what right does he have to contaminate it to get more money and power?!" "
Work done for the day besides making dinner so I'm going to read and continue the thread when I see something I'd like to share. This chapter is on the Biotech Revolution in Cuba. In the meantime I'd like any westerner who considers themself on the left to read this before showing that they don't know know what they're talking about in my mentions.
And I immediately want to share the first pages of the chapter. "hey we just thought you should know we made a lung cancer vaccine" Transcript will be posted below it's too long for alttext.
Chapter 5 serious case of Cuba's biotech Revolution:
Inmate September 2018, a United States human biotech joint venture was established to trial and deliver CIMAvax-EGF, an Innovative Cuban lung cancer immunotherapy treatment to patients in the United States. Innovative immunotherapy Alliance essay was set up by Buffalo based Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center and Havana Center for molecular Immunology (CIM), an Institutional collaboration which benefited from the tentative reproachment between the United States and Cuba in 2015 and 2016 the sheer fact that such an entity should exist is scientifically and politically groundbreaking for several reasons. First, it testifies to the extraordinary development of biotechnology in cuba, which has been largely overlooked in medical science and business History Literature on the field. Second, despite six Decades of the United States blockade obstructing Cuba's foreign trade, external financing, technology transfers and scientific exchange, including in the medical field, it is the Cubans who have contributed the Innovative science to this joint venture; they have cracked a difficult nut, using immunotherapy to combat cancer. Third, while Global biopharma is associated with speculative, mostly private, capital, the Cuban industry is entirely state-owned and financed. The emergence of Havana's scientific Poll for example, was the result of State planning, not of Market forces attracting private interests to a given location. The Cuban state was motivated by socioeconomic and Welfare concerns, not simply economic gains. Force, well domestic production of medical drugs and supplies was an imperative forced on Cuba by the US blockade, particularly in the post-soviet era, the historical development of Medical Science on the island, with its focus on parasitology and immunotherapy, was also decisive. So is the involvement from the outset of researchers and biophysics and nuclear physics with the technological and instrumental knowledge necessary to construct the first Cuban laboratories, the collaboration between Roswell Park and cim begin when the Cuban researcher guisela Gonzalez, who is visiting her family in Pittsburgh in 2011, cold called the Roswell Park Cancer Center in buffalo, new york, to tell them about a lung cancer vaccine developed by Cuba's cim. They invited her to give a presentation about the simivax vaccine. Dr Kelvin lee, chairman of Roswell Department of Immunology told me his reaction: quote gazella came up and gave a great Immunology talk. I'm sitting there thinking " why would that ever work? Quote then she goes on to show it works and that they have done all of these clinical trials. My good friend from California sitting next to me said " the Cubans just throw out chapter 1 of every Immunology textbook we know and quote and it's like that's really clever, we would have never thought to do that. Dr Lee admits that this was a revelation; he had an outdated, romantic image of Cuba from the I Love Lucy days, the 1950s, tropicana, and all that. We hadn't really thought about Cuba progressing forward from that time. With little contact between Cuba and the United States for nearly 60 years he says, quote they were really flying under the radar ". Roswell Park took the Bane and shortly afterwards Lee attended an international Immunology convention in Havana he was impressed by the number of innovative scientists doing the remarkable research at cim. Quote who would have guessed that there was a medium-sized pharmaceutical company that had integrated its basic research all the way through to commercial production in one plant? They were adapting very sophisticated Technologies to their economic constraints. Cuban scientists don't have a lot of resources to burn so they think very carefully about what they're going to do before they even start. They are very thoughtful thorough planners ellipses it was unexpected. The degree of sophistication, the size of their efforts. The fact that Fidel Castro saw this is something is very important, at the dawn of the biotech era, and really pushed it forward. It was all unexpected and very exciting!"
Cuba eliminated polio in 62, malaria in 68, diphtheria in 71, measles in 93, pertussis in 94, and rubella in 95. The progress made in the shadow of the dismantling of the Soviet Union is especially incredible
When you get around to reading the actual policies of communist countries you start to understand just how reasonable they are and why the capitalists and imperialists, all the bourgeoisie of the world, hate them so much.
"Article 50 stated: everybody has the right to health and protection and care. The state guarantees this right: by providing free medical and hospital care, by means of the installations of the rural medical service network, polyclinics, hospitals and preventative and specialized treatment centers; by providing free dental care; by promoting the public health campaigns, help education, regular medical examinations, General vaccinations and other measures to prevent the outbreak of disease. All the population cooperates in these activities and plans through social and Mass organizations"
Standing and improving Healthcare
By 1970, the number of Rural hospitals had risen to 53. Provincial medical and nursing schools were established to decentralized training and encourage professionals to practice where they grew up. Tuition was free, academic achievement being the sole requisite for admission. By the mid-1970s, health services were available across the country and indicators improved significantly. A new model of community-based polyclinics was established in 1974 to deliver comprehensive care to Residents in their neighborhoods. Polyclinics gave Cuban communities local access to Primary Care Specialists such as Obstetricians gynecologists pediatricians internists and dental services. Training and policy emphasize the impact of biological, social, cultural, Economic and environmental factors on patients. National programs focused on maternal and child health, infectious diseases, chronic non-communicable diseases and older adult health. In 1976 a new ministry of Public Health was established, and a new Cuban Constitution approved.
Article 50 stated: everybody has the right to health and protection and care. The state guarantees this right: by providing free medical and hospital care, by means of the installations of the rural medical service network, polyclinics, hospitals and preventative and specialized treatment centers; by providing free dental care; by promoting the public health campaigns, help education, regular medical examinations, General vaccinations and other measures to prevent the outbreak of disease. All the population cooperates in these activities and plans through social and Mass organizations.
By the 1980s, Cuba had the health profile of a highly developed country, having eliminated most infectious diseases and poverty related diseases, so that ailments such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease became priorities, on par with the developed capitalist world. These conditions are expensive to treat.
"By 2012 there were 488 polyclinics throughout cuba, each serving between 20,000 and 60,000 patients and supporting 20 to 40 family doctors. There are 336 additional maternity homes for women with high risk pregnancies and 234 senior daycare centers. All 15 of Cuba's provinces had at least one general, one maternal and one Pediatric hospital, and most had more. There re 215 hospitals in Cuba. Cubans continue to be well served in medical terms with 7.5 doctors per 1000 head of population, nearly three times the density of doctors in the united states or the united kingdom"
People will automatically reject the idea that us does biowarfare while simultaneously believing the most clown shoes self destructive lies about communist led countries cooked up by the state department. Anyway, this keeps happening
The next chapter is on Cuban Medical Internationalism. Just last chapter they talked about things like Cuba aiding Brazil with fighting a hepatitis outbreak, I'm looking forward to learning more
"Cuban volunteer Dr Leonardo Fernandez explained " at my hospital they arrived and asked who was willing to go and told us that we might not return. I had treated hemorrhagic fevers in Mozambique and I raised my hand and said here I am. While I have strength and they accept me, I will go where I am needed"
Also alarming was the high proportion of health care workers among Ebola fatalities. the lack of public health facilities or programs and West Africa exacerbated the problem. thus, when the WHO called for international assistance, rich countries threw them finances, supplies and military personnel but not the urgently needed medics. in September 2014, WHO director Margaret Chan said " money and materials are important but those two things alone cannot stop Ebola virus transmission. human resources are clearly our most important need. We need most especially compassionate doctors and nurses, who will know how to comfort patients despite the barriers of wearing PPE and working under very demanding conditions."
Cuba was the first country to respond to the who appeal, sending the largest medical contingent to Guinea , Sierra leone, and Liberia. Where they had already had Medical personnel. When Perez told w h o officials that the Cubans would stay for at least 6 months they replied " you are crazy no one can be there 6 months, it's too high risk! After 3 or 4 weeks the Medics will get ill. " Perez ruled that out, confident that thorough preparation would prevent infection. That training was his responsibility.
Back in cuba, the ministry of Public Health called for medical volunteers. Nothing was said about renumeration, but the risks were made clear. Incredibly, within 2 weeks more than 10,000 people had volunteered as Perez says, quote to gamble with their lives quote. Interviewed in monrovia, the capital of liberia, Cuban volunteer Dr Leonardo Fernandez explained: quote at my hospital they arrived and asked who was willing to go, and told us that we might not return. I had treated hemorrhagic fevers in mozambique, and I raised my hand, and here I am. Well I have strength and they accept me, I will go where I am needed."
Perez had a field Hospital set up on the ipk grounds. The Cuban climate created similar conditions to those in West africa. Over 400 Cuban volunteers were picked for 4 weeks of intensive training in cuba, and the 256 who were subsequently selected for the mission in West Africa received another four weeks training there. Those Cubans had an average age of 47, and 15 years of professional experience. All had Faced Natural Disasters and disease outbreaks in other developing countries as members of Cuba's International Henry Reeve contingent, which is discussed below.
Arriving in early October 2014, they worked in groups of three doctors and six nurses in 6-hour shifts, 7 days a week. The 23 Cuban medical professionals already working in Sierra Leone were joined by 165 volunteers; 53 went to Liberia and 35 to guinea where 16 Cuban medical professionals were already stationed. The Cubans confronted immense physical, medical and psychological challenges: sweltering in their protective gear coping with dehydration, patients often reaching them once the disease had caused serious damage. Initially they faced mortality rates of 50%, traumatic even for experience professionals. Dr Fernandez reported: quote we saw entire families die, children left alone. But we also saw others who survived ebola, who after recovering adopted orphaned children. " the Cubans stayed two or three in a room in budget hotels, paid for out of the daily stipend of between USD 220 and USD 250 received from the United Nations to cover food and lodgings.
Cuban Medics quickly reduced the mortality rates of their patients to 20% and introduced a preventative education program to stop the disease spreading. Over 400 lives were saved in Sierra Leone and guinea alone. The Cubans treated hundreds of other patients infected, not by ebola, but by similar pathologies, such as malaria, a far bigger killer than ebola, responsible for over 400,000 African deaths every year. Two Cuban doctors died after getting malaria. Just one Cuban doctor Felix Baez, contracted Ebola. He was transferred to the Geneva University Hospital to be treated at the un. Perez rushed from Havana to Geneva to join the medical team treating him. He recalled that Bae has arrived quote in critical condition, not always lucid quote. However, quote on day two he recognized me. He told me, " I'm going to be okay, and I'm going back to Sierra Leone" I have to admit I was very moved." That is exactly what Baez did.
By January 2015, Cuba had trained over 13,000 people to deal with Ebola in 28 African countries, plus 68,000 people in Latin America and 628 in the caribbean. The training program in Havana was attended by 278 Specialists and infectious diseases from 34 countries including the United states. Within cuba, nearly 324,000 people received Ebola training. By March 2015, the situation in West Africa was under control. The Cuban Medics had a staggered return, followed by 21 days in quarantine at the ipk hospital to safeguard against introducing the virus to the island. 3 weeks is the maximum incubation. For ebola. By May 2015, over $26,500 cases of Ebola had been reported, resulting in over 11,000 deaths, 1/5 of them children, and including 507 Medical personnel.
Dr Fernandez pointed out that the media impact of Cuba Isabel emissions quote made some believe that we had done something extraordinary, which makes us Heroes quote. Indeed, Cuba's contribution was lauded internationally. A New York Times editorial explained: " the work of these Cuban Medics benefits the entire Global effort and should be recognized for that." In mid-october 2014, both the US Secretary of state, John kerry, and US ambassador to the United nations, Samantha power, praise the Cuban role in West Africa. Announcing reproachment between the United States and Cuba on 17th December 2014, President Obama referred to Cuba's Ebola campaign as an example of the benefits of collaboration : " America and Cuban health workers should work side by side to stop the spread of this deadly disease "
Dr fernandez, however, shied away from special praise. He asked: " how is it different from those Cubans working in the Brazilian jungle? How is it different from those in the Venezuelan jungle, working alone and Indigenous communities for months? How is it different from those serving an African villages? Or in the jungle, and temperatures reaching 48°. The difference is that this was a high profile International mission. " his point is that the contribution of Cuban healthcare workers elsewhere, and over decades, has largely been ignored the Cubans combating Ebola but we're a drop in the ocean compared to the 400,000 Cuban medical professionals who have worked overseas in 164 countries since 1960 and about whom politicians and the mainstream media have said almost nothing.
And what an impact they have had! Literally, millions of lives have been saved and hundreds of millions of lives improved. By the Ebola outbreak in 2014, Cuban medical professionals had performed 1.2 billion consultations overseas, attended 2.2 million births and performed over 8 million surgeries. More than 4,000 Cuban Medical Professional over half of them doctors were already working in 32 African countries at that time. Some 76,000 Cuban medical personnel had already worked in 39 African countries since the early 1960s. Meanwhile, Cuba had sustained more than 20,000 healthcare workers in Venezuela for a decade, with thousands more in neighboring countries. Add to their numbers the Cuban soldiers, educators, constructors, technicians and other Specialists sent overseas by the government and you get to the astonishing fact that in Revolutionary Cuba around 1 in 10 Cubans have been on an internationalist mission.
" what motivates the Cuban approach to solidarity? What are its political and ideological foundations?
First, the revolution of 1959 combines the values of Cuban national Independence hero José Martí with the principles of Marxism-Leninism. second, the post 1959 Public Health Care system was constructed on those values: free, universal, state provision was endorsed as a human and constitutional right. And, third, Cuban medical internationalism is an extension of those principles beyond the island's shores"
Flooding and landslides in Venezuela's Vargas state in December 1999 killed up to 30,000 people. Just 10 months into his first term in office, president Hugo Chavez launched a major rescue effort. Cuba sent a 450 strong medical Brigade including 250 to assist. At the Venezuelan's request they remained after the emergency. In October 2000 Chavez and Fidel Castro sign their first cooperation agreement, which included Cuban assistance and improving the Venezuelan Healthcare system. Cuban doctors be sent were needed in Venezuela and deliver Public Health education. Venezuelans would train in Cuba as doctors, nurses and medical technicians and Venezuelan patients would receive medical treatment free of charge in cuba. Cuba would sell its medical products and equipment to venezuela. By 1998, when Chavez was first elected president, 17 million Venezuelans out of a population of 24 million, that is 70%, lacked regular access to medical care, and over 4 million Children and adolescents suffered from malnutrition, 1.2 million with severe malnutrition. The situation did not sufficiently improve during the early years of Chavez's presidency. In 2004 Hector Navarro, then the Venezuelan minister of higher education, describe the situation as a humanitarian crisis an estimated that 20,000 Physicians were acquired to tackle it. In 2003 a pro Chavez mayor in Caracas proposed the Barrio Adentro health program to introduce free local Health Professions to slums in Libertador municipality. The Venezuelan medical Federation instructed its members to boycott the initiative, so the mayor appealed directly to the Cuban Embassy for help. The program was subsequently launched in April 2003 with 58 Cuban doctors. In may, another 100 arrived and were spread throughout caracas. Following the program success and popularity, it was extended nationwide. Cuban healthcare workers poured into Venezuela to staff it. But December 2003 over 10,000 Cuban medical professionals, half of them women, were in Venezuela and had conducted 9 million patient consultations and 4 million Health interventions. They set up local practices and poor neighborhoods with one doctor for 250 families, living on the premises, as in Cuba
I'm reminded of the South African firefighters dancing at that Canadian airport when they came to the aid of the people to combat the huge wilfldfires there last year and how beautiful it was to see delegations from around the world showing up to put the work in at a time of crisis. What kind of person refuses that kind of help?
I keep posting multi page bits of this but what I really want is for people to read this book themselves. As usual, this is long so transcript below and George Bush is a demon who should be put on public trial.
The new head of USIS from 2005, Michael parmley, had continued efforts to Foster and unite the small, fractured and infiltrated opposition. More sophisticated programs were developed to Target discontented use: to use hip hop, afro-cuban groups, artists, foreign students and social media to engage young Cubans in opposition activities. The celebrity dissident of this era was Yoni sanchez, who would emigrated to wealthy Switzerland in 2002, where she studied computer science, before returning to Cuba two years later and setting up the blog Generation Y in 2007. One year later she was awarded over $320,000 USD equivalent to 1,488 years of Cuba's minimum salary an international journalism prizes and human rights awards, despite having no track record and no following in cuba. Time Magazine listed her among its top 100 most influential people in 2008.
In April 2009 a cable leaked by wikileaks, Jonathan farrar, head of USIS from 2008 to 2011, noted that Sanchez's quote International Fame fuels further jealousy among the traditional dissident organizations quote and that there is no effective Civil Society opposition. The main dissident organizations had little residence among ordinary cubans, were unlikely disciplines the Cuban government, have been infiltrated by government agents, we're consumed by internal conflict and preoccupied with obtaining resources and salaries. Indeed, in November 2006, a US Government accountability officer for it revealing how usaid taxpayers money was being spent, recorded expenditure on computer gaming equipment and software, leather coats, cashmere sweaters, crab meat and Godiva chocolates. Well investing heavily on imputive Democracy programs, the Bush Administration further squeezed the Cuban economy. In May 2004 the US Federal Reserve imposed a fine of USD $100,000 on USB Switzerland's largest bank, for transferring US dollar notes to cuba. In October 2004, Daniel Fisk explain the administration strategy quote to identify long ignored revenue streams for the Castro regime and then move to the great them. For example, tourism. When factoring the decline of all revenue flows, we estimate we will have denied the regime at least half a billion dollars over a calendar year. A Cuban assets targeting group is established to investigate and stop hard currency flows into and out of cuba. The Cuban government responded by removing US dollars from domestic commerce, substituting it with the Cuban convertible peso, which was printed in cuba. Attacks of 10% was levied on transactions to exchange US Dollars into Cuban convertible peso on the island, to compensate Cuba for the risks incurred when using the dollar in international transactions. However, in 2008, the capitalist system entered the most severe structural crisis for over 80 years, following the Global Financial collapse and the subsequent International recession. In late September 2008, President Bush Jr professed quote the market is not functioning properly quote and saw oversaw unprecedented government bailouts for Private Financial institutions, undermining faith in the Curative power of Market forces. This compounded the challenges facing the bush administration, who's quote shock and awe " strategy had entangled the US Military and bloody occupations in Afghanistan and iraq. Meanwhile, the rise of brics brazil, russia, India and China and other emerging economy is revived the state-led development path. With Latin America swept Along by the pink tide and Alba membership expanding, Brazil hosted The Summit for Latin America and Caribbean integration and development into December 2008 it was the first time in nearly 200 years of Independence that the Region's heads of States had met without representatives from the US or europe. The summit led to the foundation of the community of Latin American and Caribbean States in 2011 and Havana hosted its second summit. In this complex context the January 2009, coinciding with the 50th anniversary of the Cuban revolution, the Oval Office open its doors to Barack obama, his campaign pledges included closing its prison camps in Guantanamo Bay and resetting us relations with Latin
reading about the entire island engaging in diplomatic processes that are months long and discussion and suggestion based and not just throwing a vote to whatever asshole has enough money to get their face everywhere is really showing me how much the liberals and democratic "socialists" (don't laugh!) need a reality check about Cuba.
" we are left to ask, what could the Revolutionary people of Cuba achieve if they were left in peace - if they were finally given the chance to prosper, and not just survive."
If you have made it to the end of this thread i would like to extend to you my gratitude. Thank you for taking some time to learn about Cuba together with me. If you are able I would like to ask that you donate to Hatuey Project, a medical relief project dedicated to helping Cuban children who's medical supplies are being blockaded by the cruel blockade imposed by the united states. To circumvent the blockade the project purchases the supplies themselves and ships them to Cuba. If that is beyond your means I ask that you take what we have learned together and discuss it with others, find ways to get engaged, and help increase the pressure to end the blockade on Cuba. <3 🇨🇺
After reading about the amazing and heroic Cuban doctors in this thread how do you feel about the Biden administration, on the 24th of June 2024, officially labelling the doctors as "forced labor", accusing the Cuban government exploiting them for profit, and expanding the existing sanctions on Cuba? I think it's a disgrace and I cannot wait for the day we make the us government lift the blockade